As we head to the weekend, there are a few stories that deserve a second — and perhaps even a third — look. The first involves the administration’s continued “war” against Venezuela’s so-called drug boats.
Even after yesterday’s circle-the-wagons exercise by Trump loyalists, questions remain as to why the U.S. Navy fired a second, third and fourth strike on a defenseless boat in the middle of the Caribbean Sea.
Conservative legal analysts and Republican lawmakers are wondering whether any of these targeted boats posed a genuine threat to the United States — and why the White House has rambled through a series of inconsistent explanations since last Friday’s Washington Post report.
This morning, the New York Times asks the same question raised by Fox News legal analyst Andrew McCarthy: whether all strikes against all boats during this campaign have been illegal.
My reporting suggests that while Pete Hegseth remains one of the least respected Cabinet members on both sides of Capitol Hill, President Trump is not in a hurry to rush him out of the Pentagon — at least while the press is circling the least qualified secretary of defense in U.S. history.
But that doesn’t mean Hegseth should pencil in plans for a Washington summer. Insiders have suggested to me that he and a few other Cabinet members may be sent packing by early spring so the White House can unload political baggage before the midterm races begin in earnest.
Big media news: The Warner Bros. Discovery sweepstakes has been won by Netflix — leaving Paramount Skydance and Comcast, MS Now’s soon-to-be former parent, out in the cold.
Paramount’s David Ellison angrily suggested the merger between WBD and Netflix would never pass regulatory hurdles. Initial reports out of the White House suggest he may be right.
Maybe Ellison’s radical restructuring of CBS News to Trump’s liking will make the White House follow through in killing the deal.
But enough Washington drama for the day! Let’s talk about something far more pleasant: what you’re going to do this weekend.
With Thanksgiving in the rearview mirror, the countdown is on: 20 days left to finish Christmas shopping. But between the gift buying and inevitable shipping delays, there’s plenty happening around the country to tempt you away from your to-do list:
We begin with the most important sporting event in the country: Saturday’s SEC Football Championship at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, where Georgia takes on Alabama. We at The Tea know our bias, and we embrace it. Roll Tide!
For those interested in smaller events like the World Cup, the draw for each country’s opponents takes place today at the Kennedy Center in Washington.
Off the gridiron and pitch, the holiday spirit is taking over, city by city.
In the Hub, the famed Boston Pops Orchestra presents Holiday Pops, a time-honored local tradition for the whole family to enjoy.
In Chicago, there’s plenty going on at the Lincoln Park Zoo, including ZooLights and a special tribute to “A Charlie Brown Christmas.”
Cleveland is staging a live version of one of the greatest Christmas movies ever — “A Christmas Story” — and you can even go see the house!
Down in Florida, participate in or enjoy watching the annual Palm Beach holiday boat parade, while over in Texas, downtown Galveston turns into a Victorian-era wonderland.
In Chandler, Arizona, it’s a trip back to the 1970s with the Punk Rock Christmas festival.
And if you find yourself across the pond in London, fans of “The Royal Tenenbaums” are in for a treat — the Wes Anderson: The Archives exhibit at the city’s Design Museum. Bring your own retro tennis outfit!
MAILBAG
Thank you to our many readers who have written to The Tea, Spilled by Morning Joe! Here, the “Morning Joe” family answers a few of your burning questions.
From a Reagan independent: Assuming Democrats can gain a majority in the House, and possibly tighten up the Senate, what will our government look like in function and priority? How might things change for us through ’28? — David B., Rio Vista, Calif.
Great question, David. Some Democrats will be focused on launching ethics investigations regarding a blizzard of corrupt-sounding deals that have defined the first year of the second Trump administration. Other backbenchers will want to file articles of impeachment on a variety of issues.
If Democrats want to prove themselves effective leaders, they should push for significant reforms in the current U.S. health care system. Extending Obamacare subsidies is not enough by itself. Democrats need to pass a bill in the House that requires private health insurance companies to:
- Actually give you the health insurance coverage that you pay for
- Cover all treatments that your doctor says are medically necessary
- Ban the hidden charges that blindside patients after they get home
David, I believe the Democrats should also work tirelessly to get rid of any tariffs that drive up the prices of groceries, housing and gas. Affordability, affordability, affordability.
As much as Republicans would like to make every campaign about social issues, Democrats must make the election about kitchen table concerns, and then govern like they meant it!
Where is all the money that is supposed to be coming in per month through tariffs going? Why has no one started to pay off the national debt with the trillions (I believe Trump claimed) per month supposedly being generated by the tariffs? — Lou E., Baltimore
Hey, Lou. An important question!
Expect the president to continue pushing his GOP Congress to use much of the tariff money to pay off Americans with tariff refund checks. Donald Trump believed that his personal signature on the checks of Covid-19 relief funds was a big political winner in 2020.
And now he believes the same will be true six years later if he gets the opportunity to send those refund checks before next year’s elections.
President Trump’s main obstacle right now is Republican members of Congress who rightly suggest that such a political giveaway program would be fiscally insane with a federal government that is $37 trillion in debt. I agree.
I always wonder when and from whence you do your daily research to prepare for the next day. — Frances D., Cincinnati
Well, Frances, I read a good bit and have for most of my life. Because I’ve always been particularly interested in presidential history, the news I take in each day — from the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Financial Times, The Atlantic and The Washington Post — usually gets filtered through that perspective.
The news I read is also influenced by conservative views shaped by Edmund Burke and Russell Kirk’s seventh edition of “The Conservative Mind.”
It was Burke’s “Reflections on the Revolution” in France that framed his skepticism of political radicalism and dogma.
Burke wrote that political extremists could tear down in one day institutions a country had taken centuries to build.
And Kirk reminded us that true conservatives are always hostile to ideologues of any stripe. He argued that a stable society rests on custom, convention and the Constitution.
So let’s hope today’s counterfeit conservatives — the very radicals Burke and Kirk warned about so many years ago — are soon replaced by leaders who respect the Constitution, honor political custom and uphold traditional social virtues — like showing compassion to the less fortunate and being respectful to others.
How could “It’s a Wonderful Life” and “The Holiday” not be in the 10 best Christmas movies?— Karen M.
Karen, I completely agree!
Frank Capra’s “It’s a Wonderful Life” is not only my favorite Christmas movie; it is my favorite movie of all time. James Stewart is remarkable as George Bailey, and Donna Reed is divine as his loving and patient wife, Mary.
The 1946 movie always ends with me wiping tears from my eyes. George rushes into his old, dusty home, pulls the knob off the staircase banister, runs upstairs to hug his kids, sees Zulu’s petals and then walks downstairs to learn that the long-suffering Bailey is actually the “richest man in town.”
While those moments still move audiences to tears, it is an emotion earned. Jimmy Stewart vividly displayed a dark, brooding side to his acting that jumped off the screen. The Hollywood movie star had just returned from World War II and was still moving past the emotional scars the war left behind. That struggle radiates on the screen and makes that joyful reunion at the end of Capra’s masterpiece that much more moving.
What a movie, Karen! Your question is making me think I need to watch it again this weekend.
Joe, what are you currently reading? What’s on your to-read list? Thanks. — Barb L., Abbotsford, British Columbia
I’m finishing Andrew Ross Sorkin’s magnificent “1929.”
I’ve picked up Fareed Zakaria’s paperback “Age of Revolutions” on the great progress made in the Western world over the past 450 years.
Cameron Crowe’s “The Uncool” is so fun for me as a fan of the man’s rock reporting.
“The Beatles Anthology” is back on my reading list as we celebrate the 25th anniversary of its release. I was at the Paley Center on Wednesday night discussing the project’s 25th-anniversary release with a panel that included Max Weinberg. It brought back memories of how “Anthology” took fans behind the scenes of the Beatles’ remarkable career.
I’m also trying to set aside time to regularly study the Bible every day. Work travel, night events and too many other obligations keep me on the run. Setting aside that quiet time has been more difficult than expected because Mika and I wake up at 4:30 and seem to be shot out of a cannon for the rest of the day.
But this is a New Year’s resolution I plan to start today!
ONE LAST SHOT
This week, Santa Claus and his ever-faithful penguin swam together at Sunshine Aquarium during preparations for an upcoming Christmas special event in Tokyo.
CATCH UP ON MORNING JOE
SPILL IT!
Next week, Jim Belushi and Craig Brewer join us to discuss their new movie, “Song Sung Blue.” Want to ask a question? Send it over, and we will pick our favorite to ask on the show!
Former Rep. Joe Scarborough, R-Fla., is co-host of MS NOW's "Morning Joe" alongside Mika Brzezinski — a show that Time magazine calls "revolutionary." In addition to his career in television, Joe is a two-time New York Times best-selling author. His most recent book is "The Right Path: From Ike to Reagan, How Republicans Once Mastered Politics — and Can Again."